Software products that consumers purchase for use with their computers oftentimes have an associated product key or a similar software or hardware license. These product keys are typically printed on the disk or box that is sold to the consumer, or are electronically communicated to the consumer for some online purchases. To activate and use the product, the consumer enters the product key at his or her computer, and the computer accesses an activation server to have the product key authenticated and the software product activated. The product key is then associated with a unique computer hardware “signature” of the consumer's computer from which the activation request was received. While such usage of product keys can help avoid software piracy, it is not without its problems. Users often end up with multiple disks or boxes that they have to keep track of to keep the product keys, and can have difficulty in transferring the software product to another computer because the product key is associated with the particular computer from which the activation request was received. Such problems can decrease the usability of such software products and can increase user frustration.